The Czernecki Educational Foundation has launched a fully funded fellowship for artists, writers, and researchers from Central and Eastern Europe at Columbia University’s Institute for Ideas and Imagination (II&I) in Paris. This partnership provides a year-long residency at Reid Hall in Montparnasse, integrating regional creators into an interdisciplinary cohort of 14 global fellows to foster cross-border intellectual exchange.
Bridging Central and Eastern European Culture with Global Academia
The Czernecki Educational Foundation established this fellowship to extend its mission of sponsoring humanistic and artistic practice. According to Dr. Igor Czernecki, Chair of the Board, the foundation is building a network of institutional partnerships—including the Museum of Modern Art in Warsaw, Frieze London, and the Upė Foundation—to push Central and Eastern European culture onto a global stage.
The fellowship operates within the II&I, which Columbia University describes as a “distinctive experiment in higher education.” The program splits its cohort evenly between Columbia faculty and external scholars or artists. This structure is designed to trigger “imaginative leaps across boundaries,” creating works in philosophy, poetry, and visual art that typically wouldn’t coexist within a single academic discipline.
Did you know? The Czernecki Educational Foundation is currently the largest privately endowed educational foundation in Poland.
The Legacy of Roman Czernecki and Educational Activism
The foundation’s current initiatives are rooted in the history of Roman Czernecki. As detailed by the organization, Roman Czernecki was a teacher and educational activist who organized clandestine schooling during World War II. He later founded an experimental cooperative high school in Szczekociny.
His son, Andrzej Czernecki—a nuclear physicist, entrepreneur, and former member of the Polish Parliament—established the foundation in 2009 to honor this legacy. Today, the organization is led by Roman’s grandsons, Igor Czernecki and Andrzej Czernecki Jr.
Comparing Regional Support Systems
The foundation manages a diverse portfolio of support. While the II&I fellowship targets high-level interdisciplinary research in Paris, the foundation also operates the Horyzonty Scholarship Program. This flagship initiative focuses on secondary-school students from smaller towns and villages, addressing educational gaps at the grassroots level while the fellowship addresses them at the professional and academic level.
Case Study: Documenting Conflict Through the 2026–27 Fellowship
Tako Robakidze, a documentary photographer from Tbilisi, Georgia, is the inaugural Czernecki Educational Foundation Fellow for the 2026–27 cycle. Robakidze will use the residency in Paris this September to develop Peacekeepers.
The project is described as a multi-sensory installation and book. It examines the realities of life along Georgia’s shifting borders under Russian occupation, demonstrating how the fellowship’s resources—housing, a stipend, and access to Columbia’s intellectual community—support the creation of complex, politically charged art.
The II&I prioritizes projects that cross traditional lines between scholarship and art.
Fellowship Logistics and Application Process
The Czernecki Educational Foundation Fellowship is open to artists, writers, and researchers originating from Central and Eastern Europe. The award includes:
- A full year in residence at Reid Hall, Paris.
- Provided housing and a financial stipend.
- Full integration into the II&I community.
Applications open annually. The current application cycle closes on September 30. Interested candidates can find full eligibility guidelines and the application portal on the Institute for Ideas and Imagination’s official website.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is eligible for the Czernecki Fellowship?
The fellowship is open to researchers, writers, and artists who originate from Central and Eastern Europe.
Where is the residency located?
Fellows are based at Reid Hall in Montparnasse, which serves as the Paris Global Center for Columbia University.
When is the application deadline?
The current cycle for applications closes on September 30.
What does the fellowship provide?
Selected fellows receive a full year of residency, housing, a stipend, and access to an interdisciplinary community of scholars and artists.
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